Customer Reviews

The Yoga Teacher

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Grace is tired of her life. Her boyfriend, Harry, hasn't had a job in years, and she's sick of supporting him when he refuses to help himself. Her job as a pharmaceutical sales rep is unrewarding and does not provide her any inspiration. The only thing in her life she enjoys is yoga: Swami D's yoga center provides Grace the chance to unwind and reflect on her miserable life.

One night, a doctor Grace is marketing to confesses his dissatisfaction with his own life. He tells her he is considering going to Vietnam for a few months and training in Eastern medicine. Grace's shock at this announcement, combined with her realization that she is not the only one feeling this sense of disappointment in life, leads her to a drastic decision: she signs up for a retreat at a yoga center in California, determined to pursue the only thing that makes her happy. She is going to become a yoga teacher.

Alexandra Gray's The Yoga Teacher is about leaving your comfort zone - leaving everything comfortable and warm and forging forward into the unknown. Grace finds many rewards but also many hardships along the way. In the end, it is about pursuing those things in life that keep you fulfilled and ending those that disappoint you.

Gray has a real talent for writing characters. From Grace to her yoga students, each person in the book is crafted with loving care. Though the reader only gets glimpses into the lives of some of the characters, they nonetheless are full-blooded, three-dimensional characters that the reader is simply dropping in on for a visit. I could completely see them living their separate lives as Grace goes on with hers.

The one thing about The Yoga Teacher that may give readers some pause is its pace. Though the book is short, the first quarter of the book moves very slowly. It makes sense because it parallels the movement in Grace's life: at the beginning, Grace's life is slow and boring - there is nothing in it to excite her. Then, as she begins to make decisions to change her life, the pace of the narrative picks up, as does her story. Though it is an effective method (the reader really feels the despondency in Grace's life), it may turn some readers off.

The novel also provides some interesting information about yoga, which readers unfamiliar with the practice may find valuable. It will undoubtedly inspire some to think about joining local yoga classes.

While The Yoga Teacher could be read as a mid-life crisis type book due to Grace's age (she is 40), it is more broadly book about an unhappy woman who decides that, against all odds, she will somehow find a way to be happy. It is thoroughly enjoyable, with a quirky cast of characters that any reader will love. I recommend it to any women who find the premise interesting, as well as anyone who wants to learn more about yoga.

This was an interesting idea to have a novel that revolves around yoga. I'm a yoga instructor myself -- and a very picky reader -- but I ended up really enjoying this book.

The plot itself wasn't very original; a woman who is not satisfied with her life, ends up changing everything, and ends up happy in the end. We have seen that plot many times, but what was great about this book was all the yoga weaved into it, and how Grace really uses yoga to change her life. If you are familiar with yoga, you know that can actually happen. If you are not familiar with yoga, I'm not sure how much you would care about this book, because you may not be sure what the author is talking about half the time.

The first 50 pages, or so, kind of dragged on, and I almost stopped reading the book, but I am glad I kept reading because it picked up very well after that. Grace goes on to do her yoga training and then we hear about all of the students she encounters after that. So, the book was actually very good and I enjoyed it very much once I got into it. Read the book, you'll like it, and if you have ever wanted to try yoga, maybe this book will help inspire you!

When I first heard about Alexandra Gray's "The Yoga Teacher", I was excited. As a yoga enthusiast, I thought it would be fun to read about the main character Grace and her personal journey from a 40 year old woman dissatisfied with her job and personal life embarking on a new life as a yoga teacher. The book explores a common theme in today's western yoga community, tales of business professionals leaving everything behind for a more spiritual life roam everywhere.

For the most part, I enjoyed the book, even though I was never quite convinced with the intentions of the main character...for someone wanting to be a yoga teacher, she seemed to be a bit petty and shallow. But then, maybe that was the point.

Alexandra Gray is a good writer and the book is definitley a page turner. If you're looking for a above average bit of chick lit with a holistic twist, this will do nicely.

I was given this book as a gift and the concept of a novel about a yoga teacher was a bit of a challenge to me (as a yoga teacher) but also quite intriguing. As it turns out it was an easy, relaxing read...quite well done I'd say and I really enjoyed it. For me, the perfect holiday read.

The Yoga Teacher is a woman's novel where yoga background adds wonderful spice and plot to a charming story. The theme of how teachers learn from their students is well handled, as is the problems of teaching in a variety of settings. The mix of yoga students,old and eccentric and rich and famous may not be what every teacher encounters but the situations ring true. Honest, funny, with touch of satire. For American readers, a Londoner going to California for teacher training was a delightful surprise. A good read for yoga teachers and students.

This title is very entertaining. I bought this to replace a library book that was wiped out by a flash thunderstorm. The price was only 25 cents with $3.99 shipping costs. There is no real reason to complain, but this book was advertised as being in very good condition, but should have been listed as good or fair. The inside jackets and pages were free of blemish, but the front and back covers were creased and there was a one-inch tear on the top of the front cover. I still would have bought it, and the library did accept it as suitable replacement material.

I am tired of books written by women about women who all they think about is " I will be happy when I have a man in my life who loves me". If Alexandra Gray is a yoga teacher she should have written the book from the perspective that happiness and peace can only be found inside the heart. The story is good and a nice light read and I did like the references to postures at the beginning of each chapter but the whining and moaning about not having a man got to me.

I have not read this book but I'll throw a question out here, because I read the editorial review while looking for another book. The review refers to the "eccentric" White Lotus Foundation and, since I attended my own yoga teacher training there, and know it is not the least bit 'eccentric,' I wondered if those who read it can tell me if she describes her training at any length. If so I might buy the book for that.
Not sure you can beat Eat, Pray, Love but I might try Enlightenment for Idiots which was what I was originally looking for.